


Fear of Falling

by Oakenshield_Defender



Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Bagginshield Week, Bilbo has a fear of heights but no one knows about it, Consort Bilbo Baggins, M/M, Protective Thorin, Sassy Bilbo Baggins, Sick Bilbo, Some angst...But much fluff for the ending!, Worried Thorin, bagginshield
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-25
Updated: 2016-11-25
Packaged: 2018-09-02 02:59:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8649052
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oakenshield_Defender/pseuds/Oakenshield_Defender
Summary: Bilbo has a secret fear of heights, but tells no one about it. But when he falls ill and literally tumbles towards his death, it not only makes new fears emerge in Thorin, but it also makes him take some...drastic measures to ensure it never happens again.  
So what is a Hobbit to do when his Dwarf husband begins to coddle him too much? Why, what any respectable married Hobbit would do: corner the Dwarf and make him listen to reason! ...Or just sneakily do regicide, whichever one naturally came to Bilbo's mind when it came down to it.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hello all! This is my contribution to Bagginshield Week! :D I actually wanted to write this up for Day One since this is all about Thorin protecting Bilbo, but eh. Thanksgiving week is always busy for me, but I managed to at least get it in before the week ended! Next part will come out in a week or two (depending on the motivation I have), but seriously, I had much fun writing this out! <3 
> 
> This isn't beta'd so forgive me in advance for any glaring mistakes this more than likely will have. If any of you want to bug me or talk about Bagginshield anytime, then message/tag me anytime here on [Tumblr~!](http://bagginshieldtwit.tumblr.com)
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own The Hobbit or any of its characters I choose to play with in my head.

Erebor was as splendid and glorious once it was filled back full of its inhabitants to make it so, just as Bilbo had been told by Thorin and the Company. True, it had taken a good five years for it to fully prove such a statement, but it was well worth it from the Hobbit’s perceptive over the time he’d be staying within the mountain. In those five years, Bilbo not only had made the big decision to stay in Erebor for good after the terrible battle he and Ori were penning in books as the battle of five armies, but he also went from a simple Hobbit dubbed as a burglar to the King’s Consort within a year after he and Thorin had confessed their feelings for one another once they had forgiven each other for their past transgressions against the other, thus having a rather hasty courting period followed by a royal wedding that also was a coordination to crown both him and Thorin as King and Consort Under the Mountain.

As much as he dearly loved his husband and their people along with the whole mountain in its glorious entity, Bilbo found there was one problem he had with Erebor; one that he kept to himself at all times, knowing better than to complain about the architecture when it was an integral part of Dwarven history, much less about his anxiousness whenever he walked along the narrow winded pathways leading to and from the throne room. Hobbits were nature loving creatures that preferred their homes to be made within the green hills of the Shire after all, Bilbo being a prime example of the fact as he had taught himself to keep his eyesight upon his prize sitting on the throne rather than gazing down over either side of the narrow walkway, lest his imaginative mind conjured up images of him falling down into whatever abyss awaited him down below that would rile up fear within him.

Discovering that there had been reports of unfortunate deaths that came from falling off the narrow walkways in the vast library he helped Ori restore didn’t help Bilbo assuage his well kept fear at all; it was writhing its way out of the walls he so thickly built around it from rearing its ugly head out for everyone to see, especially with how the images of the poor souls that could do nothing but scream until the ground swallowed them was becoming a prominent picture of terror etched in his mind. For the most part, the young scribe didn’t notice the hobbit’s inner struggle as he was invested in the document itself, eagerly reading out loud the statistics of the rough percentage of people that fatally fell per year. “An uncommon occurrence? Expect at least ten deaths every year?” That made Bilbo pale in horror, but Ori was quick to assure the former burglar that the document was well over two centuries old, and giving there were no other reports of such incidents happening before Erebor fell to Smaug. Though Bilbo gave Ori a smile of gratitude for soothing his fears for now, it didn’t really help the fact that the hobbit was now praying to Yavanna that he wouldn’t be added onto the list his dear friend still held in his hands as they continued their efforts in cleaning up the library for it to be more enjoyable to be in.

Unfortunately, the fear at being such a height was totally forgotten afterwards, and wasn’t even thought about until the dreaded day came around when the King’s Consort had gotten sick with a cold worthy of rivaling the one he had years ago in Lake Town during the Quest he partook in with thirteen Dwarves.

Unfortunately, the fear at being such a height was totally forgotten once Bilbo felt the oncoming beginnings of a head cold form the day after Durin’s Day passed, the occasional sniffle and cough was annoying at most (blatantly ignoring his husband’s look of worry as he shuffled out to Dale for the day), but Bilbo was determined to finish up the meeting he was holding with King Bard and King Thranduil for the day. Then he could worry about returning back home to ask Oin for a blend of his herbal tea and maybe coerce Thorin into giving him cuddles as to help shake off the sickness slowly seeping into his system.

~*~

By the time the meeting was concluded with everyone on agreeable terms (Bilbo was pretty sure there was something romantic going on between the kings of Dale and Mirkwood, opting to tell Thorin about it later to see his reaction to the news), the King’s Consort was feeling much worse than he did earlier, which certainly made him give out a miserable groan as he escorted himself out of Bard’s place without looking back at the concerned gaze the monarchs gave behind his back, shaking off the dizzy spells that hit him on his leisure walk back to Erebor. The Hobbit usually loved to take in the scenery around him during his walks for diplomatic matters between the three kingdoms, as snow started to fall from the sky softly a few nights ago and was now officially sticking to the earth. Instead Bilbo couldn’t find the energy to focus on anything but putting one furred foot ahead of another, curling further in the Durin Blue fur coat that was gifted to him a few years ago as one of the many courting gifts his dwarf bestowed him with after they had profusely apologized and confessed their feelings to one another after the terrible battle had happened. He could feel heat rise up in a blaze, painting his cheeks and finely shaped pointed ears an apple red, another clear sign that

The Hobbit’s mind was screaming in a mantra, _‘Tea, bed, Thorin cuddles, tea, bed, Thorin cuddles’_ until he finally reached the gates of Erebor biding him welcome with how warm the greetings he got from the guards and passerby as he strolled in at a rather clumsy pace, wincing as he waved his greetings at them in passing instead of taking time properly saying hello to them. It was rather easy to get from the gates towards the throne room, where he knew his husband and nephews were more than likely going over plans for Dís’s birthday on the morrow. Bilbo had to stop in his fevered walk however, once he got to the narrow pathway that was all that stood between him and his loved ones whom were already shouting greetings at him in favor of taking in deep breaths and gathering up enough strength to last him til the end of the pathway. His energy was being sapped out of him with each step he took towards the throne, idly wishing he could hang onto something as to keep him from wobbling too close to the edges of the walkway. He focused his gaze on the majestic figures of his husband and nephews rushing toward him, a smile alighting his face at the sight, not knowing they could clearly see his sluggish walk and flushed face as he got ever closer to his goal.

“Confusticate and bebother this cold!” It was the last thing Bilbo could mutter out as a rush of heat rose up to his head that made him lightheaded, losing his focus along with his balance that made him teeter dangerously along the edge of the pathway, hearing shouts in Khuzdul ring throughout the vast throne room as Bilbo had the last thought that he at least knew Thorin was near as he fainted from the dizziness taking over him.

~*~

What Bilbo didn’t know is that the dwarf king barely got to him in time when he did faint, snatching him mid-way in his fall that would have surely been a tragic death Thorin didn’t think he could bear. He gingerly scooped Bilbo up into his arms, barking at Fili and Kili to send word to send Oín to the royal chambers immediately while purposely striding out of the throne room to tend to his sick husband.

Thorin had to stop himself from considering banning Bilbo from the throne room altogether after the terrible scare he gave him today; after all, he never thought the narrow walkway to the throne would be considered dangerous up until now, when he saw his sick consort nearly take a tumble that would have surely separated them from one another completely. The mere thought tore at his still wildly thumping heart, but managed to push the idea away from his mind completely as soon as he reached their chambers, immediately settling his precious cargo onto their bed to tug off his thick coat, followed by the rest of the royal garb Bilbo wore that day until he was wearing only his small clothes, tucking him under the furs on the bed while he pressed a kiss to Bilbo’s heated cheek sadly.

“Next time when I know you are getting sick, I’ll make Oín tend to you no matter how stubborn you get about it, Amrâlimê. I almost lost you once due to my gold sickness, and I’m not certainly not going to risk losing you due to your own stubbornness...or to Erebor herself.” The dwarf king was glad when the healer and his nephews barged into his rooms without knocking after he had whispered his promise to Bilbo, for he let the older dwarf poke and prod at the sick hobbit while he dragged a chair over to clasp Bilbo’s hand in his own, Fili and Kili both resting upon either side of the arm rests of the plush chair he was sitting in to watch over their burglar with him.

That night as Thorin was left to take care of his consort after Oín gave him the rundown of Bilbo’s current condition, in which the hobbit was suffering from a high fever and a bad head could reminiscent of the one he had years ago in Lake-Town. Otherwise he was in a deep sleep now, the occasional sniffle being the constant reminder that despite the peaceful picture Bilbo painted resting so didn’t mean that he wasn’t suffering from his sickness while he slept the night away.

The King Under the Mountain didn’t get much rest that night, as his mind was plagued with the dreaded ‘what ifs’ from the frightening fall Bilbo went through earlier that day, grateful that tending to break his husband’s fever was a good, if not useful distraction for him. Despite the fears and horror filled images swirling in his mind, Thorin took heart that none of it was real; Bilbo was right here with him solid, warm, and very much still alive. He could breathe more easier knowing his hobbit was safe and sound now, but knew he’d have to address the fact that the narrow pathway leading the throne room was not safe in his eyes for his beloved consort to be walking along any longer.

So began a plan to make it safe for not only Thorin sake of keeping his promise to Bilbo to keep him protected and safe, but to also ensure that accidents like that never happened again. Thorin knew that if he didn’t do anything about it, he’d grow paranoid and agitated, especially if he allowed Bilbo into the throne room once again that would only make him keep an eye out on him at all time instead of doing his duty as the king of Erebor. In the end, Thorin resolved the matter by reminding himself to ask his sister on her opinion with the serious topic at hand to see if she could come up with a brilliant idea, if not then he would ask the Company for help.

The repetitive task of keeping the wet cloth resting upon Bilbo’s forehead cold achieved its goal an hour after midnight, a sigh of relief escaping Thorin while he wiped away more sweat off of his hobbit’s face, adding another reminder to give both himself and Bilbo a bath in the morning before Oín came around first thing to check over the Consort. Thorin knew he had to try and get some rest before he tackled down everything concerning Bilbo on the morrow, so with one last kiss being pressed to the sick hobbit’s forehead, the dwarf straightened up and briskly stripped himself of all but his small clothes, taking care to place his crown on the dresser next to where Bilbo’s mithril made crown was resting as well. Once that was done, Thorin carefully crawled onto the bed, taking great care in sliding under the mounds of blankets to gently tug his husband into his arms, providing more warmth to the shivering form by rubbing tender circles on the smooth expanse of Bilbo’s back until he felt his beloved hobbit curl his limbs around him, a small smile tugging at the dwarf king’s lips upon feeling the shivers stop underneath his touch as he squeezed his arms around Bilbo to cuddle with more, nuzzling his nose into the messy curls he cherished dearly before sleep finally descended upon him.

**Author's Note:**

> I quite enjoy the bit of angst Thorin always bring to the table when he's worried about Bilbo. What an angst muffin. 
> 
> Next part is turning out much longer than this, so it'll come out in a few weeks or two!
> 
> Any Kudos and Comments are more than welcome!~


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